Wrestling Infiltrating Pop Culture
Acutely, I can recall my first encounter with WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) when I watched a WWE Heat episode in 2005. This episode showcased the 2005 draft; here enters (a young) John Cena *cue his trademark soundtrack – ‘My Time is Now’*. As an eight-year-old, and an enthusiastic fan of both rap and superheroes, I quickly became enchanted by this icon with his 'Superman-like' abilities and his WWE championship belt. My passion for WWE only grew stronger throughout my childhood and teenage years. This was a significant moment in WWE history as it solidified John Cena’s status as the face of WWE, making him my generation’s version of Hulk Hogan. Naturally, I became a fan of wrestling altogether the more time I invested watching it, lasting through my childhood and most of my teenage years.
“Wrestling is fake.” was a common reaction I’d be met with whenever WWE was mentioned. Wrestling is predetermined. Yes, the outcome of each match will be decided before the match itself. However, the journey to that outcome is not – and that’s the enchanting thing about it! Wrestling is unique in the sense that it’s a sport that combines the scripting of a tv drama, the choreography of a dance performance and the athleticism levels of stunt-doubles and gymnasts. This weird concoction can lead to wonderful moments -and equally horrific ones. I believe, to say “wrestling is fake” diminishes both the culture surrounding the sport and the athletes who partake in it. This is particularly poignant when considering the handful of cases where wrestlers have lost their lives either as a direct consequence of the sport, most famously Owen Hart in 1999, or indirectly, because of accumulated injuries, such as the tragic example of Chris Beniot in 2007.
The phrase “wrestling is fake" I doubt was a statement that was thrown to fans of WWF during the late 80s and throughout the 90s. My hypothesis is based on the cult-like popularity of wrestling at the time. This esteem really peaked during the Monday Night Wars as WWF’s Monday Night Raw battled it out with World Championship Wrestling’s (WCW) Monday Night Nitro. The competition between the two shows proved for good television as fans would tune into one or the other to keep up with what was happening in both shows. This competition caused a division amongst fans, as well as those in the wrestling scene. Each brand tried to outdo each other where they could, either through the controversy on the shows or through celebrity involvement with cameos from Dennis Rodman on WCW and Mike Tyson featuring in WWF’s headline pay paper view, Wrestlemania. The constant drive to exceed the opposing brand caused a magnetic, crazed loyalty that pushed professional wrestling into the mainstream psyche. This rivalry had similarities to ones like Ronaldo vs Messi, which continues to cause dispute amongst football fans and has grown so large that even many non-football fans know who these people are.
Besides tuning into your preferred show on Monday nights, a popular way to signify your alliance visually was through merch. A concept pioneered by the Music industry, branded merchandise helped to identify like-minded fans and grow a fanbase, through desirable, identifiable graphics that infiltrated pop culture and streetwear trends. Famous examples from the music industry include Guns N’ Roses, Nirvana and Metallica. Iconic merch, such as Nirvana’s yellow smiley band tee’s, can be found on both ‘true fans’ of the band, and ‘posers’ alike, because of the weight these pieces hold in popular culture – continuously regurgitated in fashion trends, referenced in movies and captured in paparazzi shots of the zeitgeist celebrity of the moment.
These successes led wrestling to copy the music industry’s blueprint with the hope of obtaining similar levels of triumph. Although collectively, wrestling may not have reached the same level of success as demonstrated by the music industry, there are some examples of 90s superstar's merch obtaining timeless status. Wrestling merch usually falls into a simple, yet essential, wardrobe staple; black, graphic tees. My favourite piece of WWE merch is ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin’s “Austin 3:16”-emblazoned shirts which feature his iconic logo of a menacing-looking skull on a black t-shirt.
To me, this graphic embodies the black-leather clad icon’s persona as an athlete who greets his opponents with his middle finger up. In terms of popularity, a lot of cultural importance can be placed on the nWo and their iconic merch.
nWo was a group consisting of founding member Hulk Hogan, Scott Hall and Kevin Nash (and other members later joined), who changed the landscape of WCW at the time. Their cool, rebel-like charisma really resonated with fans. “They wore all black, defied authority at every turn, and cut promos filled with obscure in-jokes and fourth-wall-breaking references” (whatculture.com). Their antics in the ring propelled WCW during the Monday Night Wars and progressed smoothly into the streets, as more and more fans and fashionistas rocked their merch. For Stone Cold and nWo, their similar attitude towards authority during their peak as well as their larger than life personality could justify why their merch is still popular to this day.
Through iconic graphic tee’s nWo’s messaging and values give people the confidence when rocking their merch to this day. Serving as a form of escapism, wearers may want to have the confidence to defy authority and feel cool doing it.
Unfortunately, the popularity of wrestling merch has dwindled through the years, particularly during the ‘PG era’ (2008-2013) aptly named due to the sports rescheduling & following toning-down that occurred to make it suitable content for children. Although wrestling has a wider global audience today compared to the 90s, the mainstream perception of wrestling hasn’t grown with it. The cool and defiant nature has gone, and present-day wrestlers struggle to gain the street cred from their merch in the same way that the famous wrestlers of the 90s did. A grown person wearing wrestling merch from today’s stars may be seen as cringe rather than cool. Fans may choose merch from less mainstream wrestling companies because, at their core, these companies still hold the edginess and roughness of 90s wrestling, without having to appeal to a PG criterion.
Written by SuNom Bawa
Hi, I'm SuNom. Born in Nigeria and raised in the UK. I studied Economics at undergrad and Political Economy at Masters level. My interests vary and I hope you like them as much as I do.